How accurate is the unemployment rate in Thailand

[JLCrab]

This from The New York Times

April 3, 2014

Two of the three major stock market indexes dipped slightly on Thursday on the eve of the government’s report on March employment ... Investors were reluctant to make big bets ahead of Friday’s government labor report, in which they will be looking for evidence that the recent weather-related weakness in the economy has passed. Economists are forecasting that employers added 200,000 jobs to nonfarm payrolls in March, according to a Reuters poll.

Sometimes the absolute numbers are less important than the fluctuation from period to period. Maybe some guys on here are in markets or do currency transactions which may be affected by the Thai unemployment figures. For me, at least, on any tangible basis, couldn't make a lick of difference.

[thailiketoo]

At least some folks realize that the unemployment rate is computed the same way in Thailand as the West that is by survey and not any actual numbers of people paying taxes or drawing unemployment.

Who conducts these surveys?

In the USA, the survey itself is carried out by 2,200 trained and experienced Census Bureau employees. In Thailand they are conducted in accordance with the European Statistics Code of Practice. The NSO (National Statistics Office) has 83 permanent employees and 1064 civil servants that do the work. They also have 1114 temps hired to help gather data. http://web.nso.go.th/en/kno/data_kno/offstatun.pdf

Now give me one good reason you can ask questions but are not willing to look up the answers yourself?

[Pattszero]

Unemployment Rate in Thailand is reported by the Bank of Thailand. Detailed information about it is held at the IMF.

Billions of dollars are invested every day based on these statistics among others. However 4 posters in Thai Visa who have a net worth of .00000001% of the investment value of the above organizations feel the statistics are in error. They don't know what the real statistics are however but they know they must be wrong.

Or http://www.indexmundi.com/thailand/unemployment_rate.html They use the CIA world fact book. However it must be said that a retired bank teller from the Midwestern USA does not agree with these numbers. He does not know what the real numbers are but since a lady he met on the INTERNET Dates a Poppin site lost her job they must be wrong.

Indexmundi

Unemployment rate: 0.7% (2012 est.)

0.7% (2011 est.)

Definition: This entry contains the percent of the labor force that is without jobs. Substantial underemployment might be noted.

Source: CIA World Factbook - Unless otherwise noted, information in this page is accurate as of December 6, 2013

Thailand has a BBBB or Baaa1 rating from the credit rating agencies but according to a recent 2 AM exit poll of xxxx Plaza patrons, Moodys, Fitch and S&P don't know nuthing.

http://www.indexmundi.com/g/r.aspx?c=th&v=74 gives a country by country comparison.

Laughable - tragically, you honestly believe it. Have a read at the disclaimer -

https://www.cia.gov/about-cia/site-policies#disclaim

The CIA rely upon data from unreliable sources. Does anyone here actually believe that Thai businesses accurately report? It should be renamed The CIA World Guesswork Book.

There is no mechanism to measure unemployment in Thailand - so the answer is. "Don't know."

[thailiketoo]

Unemployment Rate in Thailand is reported by the Bank of Thailand. Detailed information about it is held at the IMF.

Billions of dollars are invested every day based on these statistics among others. However 4 posters in Thai Visa who have a net worth of .00000001% of the investment value of the above organizations feel the statistics are in error. They don't know what the real statistics are however but they know they must be wrong.

Or http://www.indexmundi.com/thailand/unemployment_rate.html They use the CIA world fact book. However it must be said that a retired bank teller from the Midwestern USA does not agree with these numbers. He does not know what the real numbers are but since a lady he met on the INTERNET Dates a Poppin site lost her job they must be wrong.

Indexmundi

Unemployment rate: 0.7% (2012 est.)

0.7% (2011 est.)

Definition: This entry contains the percent of the labor force that is without jobs. Substantial underemployment might be noted.

Source: CIA World Factbook - Unless otherwise noted, information in this page is accurate as of December 6, 2013

Thailand has a BBBB or Baaa1 rating from the credit rating agencies but according to a recent 2 AM exit poll of xxxx Plaza patrons, Moodys, Fitch and S&P don't know nuthing.

http://www.indexmundi.com/g/r.aspx?c=th&v=74 gives a country by country comparison.

Laughable - tragically, you honestly believe it. Have a read at the disclaimer -

https://www.cia.gov/about-cia/site-policies#disclaim

The CIA rely upon data from unreliable sources. Does anyone here actually believe that Thai businesses accurately report? It should be renamed The CIA World Guesswork Book.

There is no mechanism to measure unemployment in Thailand - so the answer is. "Don't know."

Sorry you are in error. So I guess you are the laughable one. The mechanism for reporting unemployment is the labor force survey that is done every month by the National Statistics Office. http://web.nso.go.th/

What country are you from? What is their mechanism to measure unemployment?

Edited June 2, 2014 by thailiketoo

[Thaddeus]

At least some folks realize that the unemployment rate is computed the same way in Thailand as the West that is by survey and not any actual numbers of people paying taxes or drawing unemployment.

Who conducts these surveys?

In the USA, the survey itself is carried out by 2,200 trained and experienced Census Bureau employees. In Thailand they are conducted in accordance with the European Statistics Code of Practice. The NSO (National Statistics Office) has 83 permanent employees and 1064 civil servants that do the work. They also have 1114 temps hired to help gather data. http://web.nso.go.th/en/kno/data_kno/offstatun.pdf

Now give me one good reason you can ask questions but are not willing to look up the answers yourself?

Mainly because I have no desire to wade through endless pages of guff to get the one snippet of information that I need.

So, it isn't the World Bank or the IMF or whoever external to Thailand that conducts these surveys and then feeds the information back, if that did happen I would more inclined to believe the info.

"The NSO (National Statistics Office) has 83 permanent employees and 1064 civil servants that do the work. They also have 1114 temps hired to help gather data."

Temps!!!!

Of course, that makes the data highly credible.

I prefer to use my own eyes thank you very much.

You don't need to have lived here for 30 years, a couple of weeks would do it, before you notice that in an average Thai Moo Ban, there is a heck of a lot more than 1% of the people that barely lift a finger on a daily basis.

Edited June 2, 2014 by Thaddeus

[thailiketoo]

Who conducts these surveys?

In the USA, the survey itself is carried out by 2,200 trained and experienced Census Bureau employees. In Thailand they are conducted in accordance with the European Statistics Code of Practice. The NSO (National Statistics Office) has 83 permanent employees and 1064 civil servants that do the work. They also have 1114 temps hired to help gather data. http://web.nso.go.th/en/kno/data_kno/offstatun.pdf

Now give me one good reason you can ask questions but are not willing to look up the answers yourself?

Mainly because I have no desire to wade through endless pages of guff to get the one snippet of information that I need.

So, it isn't the World Bank or the IMF or whoever external to Thailand that conducts these surveys and then feeds the information back, if that did happen I would more inclined to believe the info.

"The NSO (National Statistics Office) has 83 permanent employees and 1064 civil servants that do the work. They also have 1114 temps hired to help gather data."

Temps!!!!

Of course, that makes the data highly credible.

I prefer to use my own eyes thank you very much.

You don't need to have lived here for 30 years, a couple of weeks would do it, before you notice that in an average Thai Moo Ban, there is a heck of a lot more than 1% of the people that barely lift a finger on a daily basis.

Do you know a nation that does not use temps to take a census? No. They all do. You get the dunce hat and sit in the corner. Next time you can read the stuff yourself. I'll not bother to wade through the data to answer your question. To suggest that your anecdotal evidence is better than a statistical survey is nonsense. Data that is accepted by the world's financial institutions but rejected by you?

The expression anecdotal evidence refers to evidence from anecdotes. Because of the small sample, there is a larger chance that it may be unreliable due to cherry-picked or otherwise non-representative samples of typical cases.^[1][2] Anecdotal evidence is considered dubious support of a claim; it is accepted only in lieu of more solid evidence. This is true regardless of the veracity of individual claims .

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anecdotal_evidence

Oh, by the way, the USA uses 1 million temps to help in taking statistical data.

[Pattszero]

Who conducts these surveys?

In the USA, the survey itself is carried out by 2,200 trained and experienced Census Bureau employees. In Thailand they are conducted in accordance with the European Statistics Code of Practice. The NSO (National Statistics Office) has 83 permanent employees and 1064 civil servants that do the work. They also have 1114 temps hired to help gather data. http://web.nso.go.th/en/kno/data_kno/offstatun.pdf

Now give me one good reason you can ask questions but are not willing to look up the answers yourself?

Mainly because I have no desire to wade through endless pages of guff to get the one snippet of information that I need.

So, it isn't the World Bank or the IMF or whoever external to Thailand that conducts these surveys and then feeds the information back, if that did happen I would more inclined to believe the info.

"The NSO (National Statistics Office) has 83 permanent employees and 1064 civil servants that do the work. They also have 1114 temps hired to help gather data."

Temps!!!!

Of course, that makes the data highly credible.

I prefer to use my own eyes thank you very much.

You don't need to have lived here for 30 years, a couple of weeks would do it, before you notice that in an average Thai Moo Ban, there is a heck of a lot more than 1% of the people that barely lift a finger on a daily basis.

Do you know a nation that does not use temps to take a census? No. They all do. You get the dunce hat and sit in the corner. Next time you can read the stuff yourself. I'll not bother to wade through the data to answer your question. To suggest that your anecdotal evidence is better than a statistical survey is nonsense. Data that is accepted by the world's financial institutions but rejected by you?

The expression anecdotal evidence refers to evidence from anecdotes. Because of the small sample, there is a larger chance that it may be unreliable due to cherry-picked or otherwise non-representative samples of typical cases.^[1][2] Anecdotal evidence is considered dubious support of a claim; it is accepted only in lieu of more solid evidence. This is true regardless of the veracity of individual claims .

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anecdotal_evidence

Oh, by the way, the USA uses 1 million temps to help in taking statistical data.

Sorry - you're only making it worse for yourself. It doesn't matter how many temps participate, it only matters if they are told the truth.

The topic is unemployment in Thailand. There are thousands of TV members married to/living with/know Thais.

Go start a poll asking "Has Anyone Ever Come Round Your House With An Unemployment Survey?" - for the purpose of clarity, here in Thailand. I mention that cos you obviously like being pedantic.

I think the vote will be about 94% no.

The other 6% will be you trying to win an argument on the internet, two trolls, and three old drunk guys in Isaan that didn't understand the question.

[thailiketoo]

In the USA, the survey itself is carried out by 2,200 trained and experienced Census Bureau employees. In Thailand they are conducted in accordance with the European Statistics Code of Practice. The NSO (National Statistics Office) has 83 permanent employees and 1064 civil servants that do the work. They also have 1114 temps hired to help gather data. http://web.nso.go.th/en/kno/data_kno/offstatun.pdf

Now give me one good reason you can ask questions but are not willing to look up the answers yourself?

Mainly because I have no desire to wade through endless pages of guff to get the one snippet of information that I need.

So, it isn't the World Bank or the IMF or whoever external to Thailand that conducts these surveys and then feeds the information back, if that did happen I would more inclined to believe the info.

"The NSO (National Statistics Office) has 83 permanent employees and 1064 civil servants that do the work. They also have 1114 temps hired to help gather data."

Temps!!!!

Of course, that makes the data highly credible.

I prefer to use my own eyes thank you very much.

You don't need to have lived here for 30 years, a couple of weeks would do it, before you notice that in an average Thai Moo Ban, there is a heck of a lot more than 1% of the people that barely lift a finger on a daily basis.

Do you know a nation that does not use temps to take a census? No. They all do. You get the dunce hat and sit in the corner. Next time you can read the stuff yourself. I'll not bother to wade through the data to answer your question. To suggest that your anecdotal evidence is better than a statistical survey is nonsense. Data that is accepted by the world's financial institutions but rejected by you?

The expression anecdotal evidence refers to evidence from anecdotes. Because of the small sample, there is a larger chance that it may be unreliable due to cherry-picked or otherwise non-representative samples of typical cases.^[1][2] Anecdotal evidence is considered dubious support of a claim; it is accepted only in lieu of more solid evidence. This is true regardless of the veracity of individual claims .

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anecdotal_evidence

Oh, by the way, the USA uses 1 million temps to help in taking statistical data.

Sorry - you're only making it worse for yourself. It doesn't matter how many temps participate, it only matters if they are told the truth.

The topic is unemployment in Thailand. There are thousands of TV members married to/living with/know Thais.

Go start a poll asking "Has Anyone Ever Come Round Your House With An Unemployment Survey?" - for the purpose of clarity, here in Thailand. I mention that cos you obviously like being pedantic.

I think the vote will be about 94% no.

The other 6% will be you trying to win an argument on the internet, two trolls, and three old drunk guys in Isaan that didn't understand the question.

All the information to answer your question (or anybody else) has already been linked.

If the unemployment data is good enough for the London School of Economics and the Harvard Business School it is good enough for me. Anyone wishing to bow to the anecdotal evidence, "I know 3 Thais in my moo ban who don't work", go ahead.

[saakura]

your right i dont understand...

Ask any, just any business owner in Thailand and his main problem is most likely to be finding workers.

[Thaddeus]

your right i dont understand...

Ask any, just any business owner in Thailand and his main problem is most likely to be finding workers.

If you had said competent workers that wanted to work, I would agree.

[chiang mai]

An indicator might be the fact that there are nearly 2 million Burmese working in Thailand, we can only guess that they are here, not because the unemployment rate is even a little bit high!.

http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2095342,00.html

[JLCrab]

As mentioned way back when , these labor statistics for Thailand use Bayesian techniques (What? You don't know what is a Bayesian technique?) This means that that there really is only a probability -- as in the USA method -- that the 60,000 households directly interviewed will accurately reflect the real data of a country with over 300 million persons. It is accepted that the numbers or percentages of those unemployed will be within a defined margin of error and again -- as i referenced above -- the variation from month to month up-or-down sometimes will be more important than the actual number.

Edited June 2, 2014 by JLCrab

[Pattszero]

@Thailikeittoo

It doesn't matter about the links. It matters about the veracity of the raw data.

[thailiketoo]

@Thailikeittoo

It doesn't matter about the links. It matters about the veracity of the raw data.

It doesn't matter if you have a preconceived idea and don't read the links. If, however you read the links you will find out how the data is collected and by whom and it's standard of veracity.

Imagine this, In a room are 4 bankers with 20 years experience from all over the world. They are trusted to make decisions with billions of dollars every day; the dean of the economics department at London School of Economics and the President of Harvard Business school. Across from them are three Thai Visa posters who attended trade school for three years after completing the 8th grade and have almost nothing in their own savings accounts.

I ask, "Are Thailand's unemployment statistics accurate?" The 4 bankers and two academics say yes. The 4 Thai Visa posters say no.

[nidieunimaitre]

Some posters accuse me of thinking that I am more clever then the IMF etc.

I am not.

Years ago, in tempore non suspecto, I told my students that Greece had lied its way into the euro zone.

Needless to say that my students did not believe me.

Was I more clever then the ECB?

Did I have information that the ECB did not have?

No.

I read the specialised press, The information was out there for all to see.

But the ECB chose to ignore it,

- because surely things would never get out of control

- because ECB etc take orders from politicians that play power games

- because ECB executives shared the same plush seats and restaurants as the Greek government people, and you do not want to embarrass friends, do you

Of course I could also mention that the architects of the Great Lie, Goldman Sachs, later got their people into the top of the ECB, and provided the prime ministers for Italy and Greece, but then I would again be accused of believing in conspiracies.

By the way, I also told my students that banks can easily go bankrupt, soon as the trust of the public is broken.

Guess what? My students thought that I was weird.

Some posters convince themselves that Governments, ECB, IMF, World Bank,etc can be trusted.

I guess that gives them a feeling of safety and certainty.

[Thaddeus]

@Thailikeittoo

It doesn't matter about the links. It matters about the veracity of the raw data.

It doesn't matter if you have a preconceived idea and don't read the links. If, however you read the links you will find out how the data is collected and by whom and it's standard of veracity.

Imagine this, In a room are 4 bankers with 20 years experience from all over the world. They are trusted to make decisions with billions of dollars every day; the dean of the economics department at London School of Economics and the President of Harvard Business school. Across from them are three Thai Visa posters who attended trade school for three years after completing the 8th grade and have almost nothing in their own savings accounts.

I ask, "Are Thailand's unemployment statistics accurate?" The 4 bankers and two academics say yes. The 4 Thai Visa posters say no.

Are these bankers aware of what it takes to be counted as employed in Thailand.

One hour a month.

Have they ever left that room.

Are these the same bankers who didn't see the financial meltdown of the west coming.

I suppose the original question should have been phrased as "How many of Thailands labour force is underemployed?"

To which the answer is ...... Loads.

[thailiketoo]

Some posters accuse me of thinking that I am more clever then the IMF etc.

I am not.

Years ago, in tempore non suspecto, I told my students that Greece had lied its way into the euro zone.

Needless to say that my students did not believe me.

Was I more clever then the ECB?

Did I have information that the ECB did not have?

No.

I read the specialised press, The information was out there for all to see.

But the ECB chose to ignore it,

- because surely things would never get out of control

- because ECB etc take orders from politicians that play power games

- because ECB executives shared the same plush seats and restaurants as the Greek government people, and you do not want to embarrass friends, do you

Of course I could also mention that the architects of the Great Lie, Goldman Sachs, later got their people into the top of the ECB, and provided the prime ministers for Italy and Greece, but then I would again be accused of believing in conspiracies.

By the way, I also told my students that banks can easily go bankrupt, soon as the trust of the public is broken.

Guess what? My students thought that I was weird.

Some posters convince themselves that Governments, ECB, IMF, World Bank,etc can be trusted.

I guess that gives them a feeling of safety and certainty.

The alternative to trusting banks is putting your money under your bed. Nonsense however nicely worded is still nonsense. So tell me do you not put your money in banks?

If you have any information that Thai unemployment figures are not accurate post it.

I don't know who you are. I think you use banks like all of us do. I think you trust the financial system like all of us do. You probably have a mortgage and use currency based in part on Thai unemployment statistics.

I'm not a student in Econ 101. The Thai numbers are real. Tis you who are fooled.

Edited June 2, 2014 by thailiketoo

[nidieunimaitre]

Typical TV barstool talk.

I used to teach macro economics in my home country, and I was never able to answer the question: "How many are unemployed?"

Because it all depends on the definition of "unemployed".

Now someone might say: yes, but these days we use internationally accepted definitions, you can not fool the IMF etc.

Greece joined the euro area, based on - internationally accepted - lies.

Need I say more?

My all time least favorite type of post: somebody who accuses everyone else of bar-stool talk whilst claiming their own intellectual superiority yet adding absolutely nothing to the debate, yuk!

I said " I do not know".

Is that claiming intellectual superiority?

Come to think of it, maybe yes....

I know that I do not know, therefore I know more then you......

[nidieunimaitre]

Some posters accuse me of thinking that I am more clever then the IMF etc.

I am not.

Years ago, in tempore non suspecto, I told my students that Greece had lied its way into the euro zone.

Needless to say that my students did not believe me.

Was I more clever then the ECB?

Did I have information that the ECB did not have?

No.

I read the specialised press, The information was out there for all to see.

But the ECB chose to ignore it,

- because surely things would never get out of control

- because ECB etc take orders from politicians that play power games

- because ECB executives shared the same plush seats and restaurants as the Greek government people, and you do not want to embarrass friends, do you

Of course I could also mention that the architects of the Great Lie, Goldman Sachs, later got their people into the top of the ECB, and provided the prime ministers for Italy and Greece, but then I would again be accused of believing in conspiracies.

By the way, I also told my students that banks can easily go bankrupt, soon as the trust of the public is broken.

Guess what? My students thought that I was weird.

Some posters convince themselves that Governments, ECB, IMF, World Bank,etc can be trusted.

I guess that gives them a feeling of safety and certainty.

The alternative to trusting banks is putting your money under your bed. Nonsense however nicely worded is still nonsense. So tell me do you not put your money in banks?

If you have any information that Thai unemployment figures are not accurate post it.

I don't know who you are. I think you use banks like all of us do. I think you trust the financial system like all of us do. You probably have a mortgage and use currency based in part on Thai unemployment statistics.

I'm not a student in Econ 101. The Thai numbers are real. Tis you who are fooled.

I do not trust the banks, but of course I use them, because there is no alternative yet.

And I do not trust IMF, etc, all I can do is hope that they do not mess up too much.

[thailiketoo]

@Thailikeittoo

It doesn't matter about the links. It matters about the veracity of the raw data.

It doesn't matter if you have a preconceived idea and don't read the links. If, however you read the links you will find out how the data is collected and by whom and it's standard of veracity.

Imagine this, In a room are 4 bankers with 20 years experience from all over the world. They are trusted to make decisions with billions of dollars every day; the dean of the economics department at London School of Economics and the President of Harvard Business school. Across from them are three Thai Visa posters who attended trade school for three years after completing the 8th grade and have almost nothing in their own savings accounts.

I ask, "Are Thailand's unemployment statistics accurate?" The 4 bankers and two academics say yes. The 4 Thai Visa posters say no.

Are these bankers aware of what it takes to be counted as employed in Thailand.

One hour a month.

Have they ever left that room.

Are these the same bankers who didn't see the financial meltdown of the west coming.

I suppose the original question should have been phrased as "How many of Thailands labour force is underemployed?"

To which the answer is ...... Loads.

The Bankers are aware because Thailand records its data in the same way as everyone else does. In the US you don't have to work to be recorded as working. I know that and so do the bankers.

The banking system is not always perfect. So what? Does bank fraud in London skew Thai unemployment statistics?

The Thai unemployment data is recorded in the same way as every other country. It is a survey. It is more accurate than it would be if they asked everyone. If you want to look at the problems with the claimant method check out http://www.economicshelp.org/macroeconomics/unemployment/measuring_unemployment/

The thought that nothing in Thailand is true because you can't trust Thai people is getting a bit old.

[thailiketoo]

The alternative to trusting banks is putting your money under your bed. Nonsense however nicely worded is still nonsense. So tell me do you not put your money in banks?

If you have any information that Thai unemployment figures are not accurate post it.

I don't know who you are. I think you use banks like all of us do. I think you trust the financial system like all of us do. You probably have a mortgage and use currency based in part on Thai unemployment statistics.

I'm not a student in Econ 101. The Thai numbers are real. Tis you who are fooled.

I do not trust the banks, but of course I use them, because there is no alternative yet.

And I do not trust IMF, etc, all I can do is hope that they do not mess up too much.

So, in other words, you trust the Thai unemployment statistics because there is no alternative. So do we all.

[nidieunimaitre]

The alternative to trusting banks is putting your money under your bed. Nonsense however nicely worded is still nonsense. So tell me do you not put your money in banks?

If you have any information that Thai unemployment figures are not accurate post it.

I don't know who you are. I think you use banks like all of us do. I think you trust the financial system like all of us do. You probably have a mortgage and use currency based in part on Thai unemployment statistics.

I'm not a student in Econ 101. The Thai numbers are real. Tis you who are fooled.

I do not trust the banks, but of course I use them, because there is no alternative yet.

And I do not trust IMF, etc, all I can do is hope that they do not mess up too much.

So, in other words, you trust the Thai unemployment statistics because there is no alternative. So do we all.

I think I said ......NOT TRUST......

[thailiketoo]

The alternative to trusting banks is putting your money under your bed. Nonsense however nicely worded is still nonsense. So tell me do you not put your money in banks?

If you have any information that Thai unemployment figures are not accurate post it.

I don't know who you are. I think you use banks like all of us do. I think you trust the financial system like all of us do. You probably have a mortgage and use currency based in part on Thai unemployment statistics.

I'm not a student in Econ 101. The Thai numbers are real. Tis you who are fooled.

I do not trust the banks, but of course I use them, because there is no alternative yet.

And I do not trust IMF, etc, all I can do is hope that they do not mess up too much.

So, in other words, you trust the Thai unemployment statistics because there is no alternative. So do we all.

I think I said ......NOT TRUST......

If you use Thai baht you are trusting the value of that currency which is determined in part by unemployment statistics.

Edited June 2, 2014 by thailiketoo

[shirtless]

Unemployment figures are about as accurate as the tourism figures.

[thailiketoo]

Unemployment figures are about as accurate as the tourism figures.

How do you know?

[nidieunimaitre]

Somebody stopped just short of accusing me of Thaibashing.

Did I not mention Greece, IMF, Worldbank, ECB, Banks?

And it is all based on mathematics and therefore correct and undiscussable?

Apply mathematics to the world of mathematics, not to the real world please.

x + 3 = y

y - 3 = x

You can read that from left to right or from right to left, over and over again, it will always be correct.

healthy skin + fire = burned skin

Now try: burned skin - fire = healthy skin

Statistical methods can only be used in similar circumstances.

I am prepared to believe that it is technically possible to collect, analyse and interpret unemployment data in f ex Thailand and Kampuchea, or France and Germany (assuming that we can trust the governments).

But it is NOT possible to compare Thailand and Germany, even if you use the same statistical, mathematical methods.

Abuse of mathematics is the curse of modern science!

[puck2]

It is not accurate at all. The vast majority of Thai workers are grey market workers that are completely unregistered and the government has no idea what their job is, how much they make, their employment status, or even where they really live.

Only about 1/4th of Thai workers are registered, and it is only these workers that they have numbers for.

You didn't read the links I posted. But if you want to bumble along in ignorance feel free.

Do you really think the IMF and Moodys and Fitch and S&P's would be as easily bamboozled as you fellows?

But don't expect me to spoon feed you the information. I posted the links so you can read them the same as I did.

Yes, I do. Please be serious for mentioning them as reliable.

If you believe in Moodys, Fitch and S&P then please believe also that Maria was a virgin when giving birth to Jesus.

- These are private agencies with financial interests. Don't want to mention more. ...

- Do you rememeber their "reliable" ratings of the bad papers in 2008 ?

[JLCrab]

There used to be a guy who came on here and said that he predicted the US economic meltdown but that no one would listen to him.

[puck2]

Typical TV barstool talk.

I used to teach macro economics in my home country, and I was never able to answer the question: "How many are unemployed?"

Because it all depends on the definition of "unemployed".

Now someone might say: yes, but these days we use internationally accepted definitions, you can not fool the IMF etc.

Greece joined the euro area, based on - internationally accepted - lies.

Need I say more?

What is your point? That the unemployment rate in Germany, UK, USA and Thailand are all false because they use a survey method of gathering data?

All the financial data in Europe is bogus? All the loans made by the IMF are based on lies?

All of the credit rating agencies are in error and world economics is based on a lie that somehow you have discovered?

Harvard and The London School of Economics are fools and you have the inside track on the correct information.

Thailand has a very low rate of unemployment that is why millions of Burmese, Khmers and Laotians come across the border daily to work.

Thailand's method of computing the rate of unemployment is in keeping with international standards and is accurate.

You are a .....see below

conspiracy nut

........................

Completely wrong, concerning Germany and maybe many other European states. Jobless is in Germany who is registered by a special agency/office. The statistical office of the Republic amends this number by some other statistical criterions (already 2 different systems within the same state).

Main problem seems to be the definition of unemployment, as already mentioned. In agricultural emerging markets and develeping countries (i.e. Thailand) the unemployment rate is very low, in general. Why? Family members in the subsistence economy (i.e. agriculture) are not counted as unemployed, even if the work is unpayed.

Maybe you didn't read your own reference: http://web.nso.go.th/en/survey/lfs/data_lfs/2013_lf_Q3_Introcuction.pdf

4.Definition (for employed), I add this because out of context;

...... 3. worked for at least 1 hour without pay in business enterprises or farms owned or operated by house hold heads or members. .....

And here we go. A firm believer in statistics has problems to mistrust IMF, Moodys etc. Somebody with sharp eyes - @pigeonjake for example - recognises that the reality doesn't match the (manipulated) statistics. These beautified numbers sell at best for the politicians.

@WilliamCave, thanks for opening this threat. I also wondered why the jobless rates are so low here in S/O Asia. German Wiki gave me the answer. Now I know why we have a jobless rate of only ~1% in our village, following @thailiketoo's postings, although so many people don't have a real employment.

[nidieunimaitre]

There used to be a guy who came on here and said that he predicted the US economic meltdown but that no one would listen to him.

And your point is?